The growth and attachment of various marine organisms on structures in aquatic environments, known as biofouling, is a significant problem for numerous industries, including the boating and shipping industry, the oil and gas industry, and the fishing industry. Most surfaces, such as those associated with boat hulls, underwater cables, oil rig platforms, buoys, and fishing nets, which are exposed to coastal, harbor or ocean waters eventually become colonized by animal species, such as barnacles, mussels, bryozoans, hydroids, tunicates, tubeworms, sea squirts, and various plant species. Biofouling results from the interaction of polymeric adhesives produced by the plant and animal species with the substrates for which they are attached. Despite the appearance of simplicity, the process of biofouling is actually complex and involves numerous interactions with many types of microorganisms and macroorganisms.
While biofouling creates ecological problems by distributing native plant and animal species to non-native environments, its economic effects are of greater concern. Large amounts of biofouling on ships result in corrosion of the surfaces and the eventual deterioration of the ship. Large amounts of macroorganisms build-up also causes increases in the roughness of the ship's surface such that the ship experiences greater frictional resistance, decreased maneuverability, and increased drag, resulting in increased fuel consumption. Recreational boaters suffer from the same problems, as barnacles and other animals attach to propellers submerged in water. Navigational buoys or pier posts containing surfaces with large amounts of biofouling are subjected to increased stress resulting from increased weight. This increased stress often results in decreasing the useful life of the structures and necessitating continuous replacement.
Various methods have been used in reducing biofouling build-up. One of the more common methods, particularly in the boating and shipping industry, is scraping. However, scraping is labor intensive and environmental issues have been raised over the concerns that scraping results in the increased spread of invasive species. Therefore, there exists a need for devices that eliminate or reduce the amount of biofouling of surfaces exposed to water.